The last decade or so has seen a marked increase in antitrust damages actions brought before the national courts of the EU Member States. As things currently stand, such actions are governed by the various national laws of the 28 Member States. This patchwork of differing national rules further complicates the already complex underpinning of antitrust damages actions. In order to facilitate the initiation of such actions, the European institutions have recently agreed upon a new directive that provides for a minimum degree of harmonisation of certain rules governing actions for damages under national laws (the Damages Directive). Its promulgation is now just a formality.

One of the key, yet often overlooked, legal considerations in antitrust damages actions is the issue of limitation periods. For a defendant, a careful assessment of this issue is core to any cartel defence strategy and must be considered at the time of administrative proceedings, as it can have huge implications on the decision of whether or not an appeal should be considered (see the Morgan Crucible proceedings before the English courts, discussed below).

DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations.

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